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Welcome December

21st December 1937: A young girl points at the doll she wants for Christmas, in the window of a toy shop. (Photo by Fox Photos/Getty Images)

Welcome, December! Enjoy these sweet vintage photos for a moment. Whether you’re out window shopping, sledding (or dreaming of snow if you don’t live where it snows), buying gifts (I hope you don’t have to strap them to the top of your car!), or staying indoors reading a book or enjoying family time (beautiful times!), have a wonderful winter holiday.

Photo Creds: Pinterest

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How to Edit the Scene

Copy of fiction 104_ editing the scene

As we continue this editing series how we can develop a great story, I hope you’re able to see that the elements of storytelling hinges on more than concept and characters. By having all the layers in place before actually writing, you can have a clearer idea of where your story is going. Or if you’ve already written your book, how to make sure all the layers are in place so that you give your readers a delightful reading experience.

The fourth layer in developing a great story is developing the scenes within your story, whether nonfiction or fiction.

The scenes within your story link the characters and plot together like a colorful construction paper chain link that can be as short or as long as you want them to be.

How to Edit the Scene

  • What does the character want or how does the character react in this scene?
  • What is the most important dominant impression in this scene?
  • How does the scene propel the plot forward?

What does the character want or how does the character react in this scene?

As you know, in storytelling, it’s really all about what’s at stake for the main character. And the best way to show that is to show the character interacting with the scene. We’re not going to talk about the character right now, but more how the elements in the scene help the character.

In my recent, unpublished (yet) work-in-progress about a woman who retrains retired cavalry horses, my character encounters an accident where one of the horses has gotten tangled up in barbed wire fencing. The horse has been there quite a while, has thrashed around, and is lying with its neck stretched out, as if struggling for the very breath of life.

Now, what kind of elements would this scene need to include for it to grip readers by the throat and pull them through this rescue?

We must ask ourselves the following potential questions (not exhaustive, by any means):

  • What is the end of this scene?
  • What does this scene tie back to?
  • Does the scene open closer to the middle of the scene, rather than setting up the scene and easing the reader into it?
  • What is the driving emotion and motivation for the character?
  • Are any of the five senses represented here, and how to incorporate them?
  • What character actions would enhance this scene?
  • What is the takeaway for your readers?

If it seems that every aspect of storytelling is comprised of asking lots of questions, you’re right. It is. As writers, we must don our analytical hats and comb every journalist-style question as we map out the story basics. For in asking those deeper questions, we will be able to craft a compelling scene that dazzles and engages readers.

Here’s a piece of my draft scene for the story I’m writing:

The tips of Laurie’s shoes caught under some overlain bumps of grass, and she landed facedown near a pile of manure. She pushed herself up and limped toward the mare’s cry.

Ebony writhed, struggling, next to the fence.

Laurie dropped to the ground. “Easy, girl,” she soothed in her calmest voice—or what she hoped sounded calm. “Let’s see what’s wrong.”

Barbed wire had wrapped several times around the mare’s right foreleg. The wire carved gashes in her leg; skin and blood mingled together.

“Oh, my girl, how did you get into this fix?” She found out where the wire started and began to unwrap it.

The mare kicked and struggled to rise, causing the barbs to sink into Laurie’s fingers.

Laurie winced, tears springing to her eyes. “Listen, Eb.” She stroked the mare’s sweaty neck. “You’ve got to stay still until I get this wire untangled. Just take it easy, girl. Relax.” She took a deep breath as the mare squinched her eyes in pain. “It’s okay,” she soothed, working the fencing wire around and around.

Ebony apparently sensed Laurie’s racing emotions and fought to get up. The wire dug deeper into her skin as well as scraping Laurie’s fingers again. As the mare’s sweat dripped onto her bloody cuts, her fingers burned. She blew short breaths, hoping the action would distract her from the pain.

“Ebony, easy, easy,” she commanded in a shaky voice. “Hold on.” She worked furiously despite the fire sensation in her fingers. “I almost got it.”

Ebony settled down, even if the constant twitching in her shoulder did not.

Like it? It’s not perfect, and will change, but it’s a start. Can you picture the scene as if you were right there? Do you notice words that invoke emotions such as fear, intensity, pain, anguish? Do you feel the rush and the patience that Laurie does as she works to free the horse? Do you feel the blood, smell the sweat, hear the rushing of your heart in your ears?

Think about your own story, and what your character wants. Got it? Now what kind of things would need to be in your scene for the character to act upon or react to what they want, or what is happening within the scene?

What is the most important dominant impression in this scene?

The dominant impression is what stands out most in the scene. The dominant impression is the wrinkles in grandpa’s face as he smiles at his grandchildren while he’s remembering the bittersweet moments from his own childhood. The dominant impression is the dank cellar filled with root vegetables during the Depression. The dominant impression is the quirky flying car in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

In my draft scene example, the dominant impression was the horse, and I used words and descriptions and motivations that described the animal, while bringing focus to what my character was feeling—and what she wanted.

In short, the dominant impression centers around the scene and helps bring focus and emotion to the scene and whatever happens in it.

How does the scene propel the plot forward?

Propelling the plot forward is tough. Not gonna lie. It’s that delicate balance between stop, listen to the birdsong, and go, race through the sun-splashed woods.

In making the scene move forward, whether slower paced or break-neck speed, it’s crucial to set certain actions, thoughts, motivations, descriptions in such a way that the scene builds to a crescendo. If you’ve ever listened to Handle’s Messiah, you know the rush of emotion you get when that last stanza is played. Same for your writing because readers will be able to experience all those emotions with your characters at those levels, and then when you raise the stakes, then that emotion only grows.

For example, in my scene, the highest propeller is toward the end of that scene:

Ebony apparently sensed Laurie’s racing emotions and fought to get up. The wire dug deeper into her skin as well as scraping Laurie’s fingers again. As the mare’s sweat dripped onto her bloody cuts, her fingers burned. She blew short breaths, hoping the action would distract her from the pain.

“Ebony, easy, easy,” she commanded in a shaky voice. “Hold on.” She worked furiously despite the fire sensation in her fingers. “I almost got it.”

As if Laurie’s fingers are going to get pinched off, right?

Secret Sauce to the Best Scene. Ever.

Classic film director Alfred Hitchcock said,

“There is no terror in the bang, only in the anticipation of it.”

And let that be true of your manuscript, however you choose to set up your scenes in your story, whether you choose to ease in, ramp up, create waves, let it ebb and flow—or go off the deep end. No. No. Don’t do that. But do make your readers anticipate every moment of every line of every scene.

Each writer and author benefits from exploring their characters inside and out, while asking “what if?” at every turn when crafting their novel’s scene because it’s really the secret sauce to writing a great story that captivates people, agents, editors, readers, marketers, and the person who wouldn’t necessarily pick up a book and read it.

Questions? Comments? I’d love to engage in the conversation with you! Drop your question or comment in the chat below, and I’ll look forward to responding!

Your Turn!

What is the dominant impression in your scene?

Which of the five senses will you use in your scene, and how?

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How to Edit Characters

As we continue this editing series how we can develop a great story, I hope you’re able to see that the elements of storytelling hinges on more than concept and characters. By having all the layers in place before actually writing, you can have a clearer idea of where your story is going. Or if you’ve already written your book, how to make sure all the layers are in place so that you give your readers a delightful reading experience.

The sixth layer in developing a great story is developing your character within your story, whether nonfiction or fiction.

Your character is your readers’ best friend. Your character makes or breaks the story. Your character helps readers grow. Your character has influence on all other characters in the story. Your character must create empathy in your readers.

How to Edit Your Characters

  • What does your character want most?
  • What are winsome/lose-some qualities about your character?
  • How is your character motivated?

What does your character want most?

As you know, in storytelling, it’s really what drives the main character. What do they want? And the best way to show that is to show the character interacting with themselves, other characters, and the events of the story.

As I’ve said before, the greater the need, the bigger the story. So if your character wants to fly around the world, not in eighty days, but in ten, how on earth is this possible, and why do they want to do something so impossible? If your character wants to fulfil a promise to a dying loved one, then what is the internal satisfaction they’ll gain from it? Don’t just have your character want to go out on a date for the first time in twenty years; give your character a reason for wanting to do so, and maybe the motivation for waiting so long.

We must ask ourselves the following potential questions (not exhaustive, by any means):

  • Does what your character want stem from their past experiences, even before the book opens up?
  • Does what they want stem from something that just happened within the story itself? For example, the want changes. (For this to work, you’d have to have a really good reason, and you’d have to set up the story really well.)
  • Does what your character want leap off the first page, or within the first five pages?
  • Why does your character want what he/she wants?
  • Is your character’s desire from someone else’s expectation or from their own?
  • What would your character do if he/she didn’t get what they wanted?
  • What would he/she do if they got what they wanted?

What are winsome/lose-some qualities about your character?

I say winsome or lose some because if we had a character that was Goody Two-shoes all the time, I think we’d be throwing the book at the wall.

It’s better to have a character with a deep struggle that they grapple with throughout the book, and come to accept by the end. Maybe that deep struggle becomes their saving grace. If your character’s winsome qualities can somehow compliment their lose some qualities, that is even better, because it’s the constructive qualities that present the greatest challenges and victories.

These qualities can be internal, external, philosophical, esoteric, or however you choose them to be. And the more you mix them up or the quirkier they are, the stronger your character will be.

How is your character motivated?

Propelling the character forward through the plot is tough. Not gonna lie. It’s that delicate balance between stop, listen to the birdsong, and go, race through the sun-splashed woods.

In making the most of your character throughout the story, it’s important to understand why he/she is doing what they’re doing. It’s important to dive deep into the outer and inner motivations. If they want to make a trip cross country but are delayed by a snowstorm, do they drive forward anyway? What if your character doesn’t get what they want in the first place … do they flip the coin to see what their next option is, or do they sit and stew for days and days, until someone helps them snap out of it?

Whatever your character’s motivation, readers should be on pins and needles on your character’s behalf—because you have created a winsome character that tends to lose some sometimes. It’s all part of the character journey.

Secret Sauce to the Best Character Development. Ever.

“You cannot dream yourself into a character; you must hammer and forge yourself one.”

–Henry David Thoreau

“We become the books we read.”

–Matthew Kelly

The books we read. The characters we create. Both of these speak to the integrity and endurance of the fictional characters we create, or the real-life characters we write about in our nonfiction.

Each writer and author benefits from exploring their characters inside and out, while asking “why?” at every turn when crafting their character’s reactions and responses throughout the story because it’s really the secret sauce to writing a great story that captivates agents, editors, readers, marketers, and the person who wouldn’t necessarily pick up a book and read it.

Questions? Comments? I’d love to engage in the conversation with you! Drop your question or comment in the chat below, and I’ll look forward to responding!

Your Turn!

What is the best quality or trait about your character, and why?

What is your favorite character in a book or movie, and what makes you like or dislike them?

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How to Edit the Plot

february-2020-fiction-102- editing-plot-tisha-martin-editor

As we continue this editing series how we can develop a great story by having all the layers in place before actually writing, or if you’ve already written your book, how to make sure all the layers are in place.

The second layer in developing a great story is developing your story’s plot.

Surprisingly the story’s plot extends beyond points of action in your story and reaches into the area of the characters and how they interact with the story’s trajectory.

How to Edit the Plot

  • How well do you know your characters?
  • How do your characters interact with the story events?
  • How well do you create suspense, conflict, and context throughout plot?

How well do you know your characters?

Knowing your characters is more than knowing their outer attributes. Knowing your characters internally is key to mapping out a rock solid plot. Let’s explore some ways we can really get to know our characters.

If we describe our characters in terms of physical appearance, that’s great because it gives readers a visual representation; however, if we describe our characters by what drives them, then we open the door for readers to understand how our characters live and breathe. Which, by the way, enhances the plot.

For example, a librarian who doesn’t particularly like books, but is simply driven because of the patrons who frequent the library might offer an interesting plot and chain of events.

How do your characters interact with the story events?

Every story has that one character who makes the story shine, much like the key actor in a film. Which character comes to your mind? I’m thinking of D.C. Morse in the BBC series, Endeavour, and Elizabeth Bennett in Pride and Prejudice.

With our librarian, perhaps she feels remorse from an event in her past, and she seeks to cover her own feelings by paying attention to the library patrons. What if this self-serving action sends her on an adventure as she gets to know each person, therefore helping her through her own inner struggle? What chain of events would have to happen for this to be resolved?

How well do you create suspense, conflict, and context throughout plot?

Alfred Hitchcock said, “Emotion is an essential ingredient of suspense.” And, I would also add, an essential ingredient of conflict and context in the plot as well.

Back to our librarian. Would she argue with one of the patrons, or go out of her way to help another reunite with a family member? What if she was suspicious of one but not of another? If one of the patrons was homeless, would she let him sleep in the library, sneaking him in after closing? What if a young patron checked out the same book week after week, and the librarian was reminded of her own childhood fascination with books and experiences anxiety from the memories? What happened back then? And what would happen if someone found out now?

And if another patron, who did not have enough money for a library card, possessed sticky fingers, would she turn a blind eye, because she knew they were researching for something important, and this person always returned the books? What would happen if they didn’t, and the library director found out and confronted the librarian about this employee infraction? And really, why did the librarian feel motivated to let the patron take books home without a library card?

A Few Examples

Lillian Avery in Anchor in the Storm (Waves of Freedom series) by Sarah Sundin wants to prove herself by getting a job as a pharmacist. But when she gets the job, she’s thrust into more than just working at the pharmacy—by mistake she’s discovered a drug ring. How she reacts to each situation sends her deeper into the events, until she’s caught right in the middle of the struggle. . .

In Lady Jayne Disappears by Joanna Davidson Politano, Aurelie Harcourt struggles to find a home with her deceased writer-father’s wealthy family, she embarks on the adventure of finishing his last story, and is thrown into a whirl of trouble with her new family—who seem to thwart her every effort of finding out what happened to her mother.

Secret Sauce to the Plot

My favorite editor, Maxwell Perkins (who worked with F. Scott Fitzgerald and other authors of that time), said to “just get it down on paper, and then we’ll see what to do with it.” I love that because it brings home the reality that if we don’t write, we’ll be staring at a blank page. And heavens, we can’t edit a blank page!

Each writer and author benefits from exploring their characters inside and out, while asking “what if?” at every turn when crafting their novel’s plot because it’s really the secret sauce to writing a great story that captivates people, agents, editors, readers, marketers, and the person who wouldn’t necessarily pick up a book and read it.

Questions? Comments? I’d love to engage in the conversation with you! Drop your question or comment in the chat below, and I’ll look forward to responding!

Your Turn!

What is something unusual that your character possesses that could enhance your story’s plot?

What are three ways your character interacts with the plot?

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How to Edit the POV

fiction 103_ editing the pov

As we continue this editing series how we can develop a great story, I hope you’re able to see that the elements of storytelling hinges on more than concept and characters. By having all the layers in place before actually writing, you can have a clearer idea of where your story is going. Or if you’ve already written your book, how to make sure all the layers are in place so that you give your readers a delightful reading experience.

The third layer in developing a great story is developing your story’s point of view.

Point of view doesn’t stop with characters, but also comes through in inanimate and animate objects like setting and weather. Let’s discuss some possibilities!

How to Edit the Point of View

  • Who has the most at stake in this story?
  • Whose perspective offers the best story in this scene?
  • How will your chosen POV impact your characters, the plot, your readers?

Who has the most at stake in this story?

In storytelling, it’s really all about what’s at stake for the main character. And it’s not what they’re grilling, either. Unless, of course, it’s a camping novel, and then it works.

Which character has the higher stake? The butcher who is forced to sell his butcher shop because his wife is sick, or the daughter who must leave her school to travel with her family so they can get medical help for mother? It depends.

We must ask ourselves the following potential questions:

  • Who is your audience?
  • Which character is speaking to you the most?
  • Which character has the most to learn by the end of the story?
  • What is the takeaway for your readers?

If it seems as if storytelling is comprised of asking lots of questions, you’re right. It is. As writers, we must don our analytical hats and comb every journalist-style question as we map out the story basics.

Whose perspective offers the best story in this scene?

Perspective is everything. It’s the difference between telling the story from Boo Radley’s eyes or from Scout’s eyes; the old man’s eyes in UP or his wife’s eyes; or Turnley Walker’s eyes.

Even if you are not familiar with the characters I just named, you might have noticed that the perspectives are all very different from each other. There’s first person, third person, and second person.

First Person

To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper Lee tells the story from Scout’s perspective in first person. Everything that I experience in this story is as if I were viewing the world from Scout’s vantage point. I get inside Scout’s head and notice everything, feel everything, do everything, and think everything that Scout does. I’m affected by the arguments of the era, the racial disputes, and the events around me.

Writing in first person is a great way to share cultural and social issues with readers because of the depth of voice you can write from. You can also write your story from a first-person heroine and a third-person hero (in separate chapters, of course), if you’d like to switch it up a bit. Additionally, teen readers often relate to stories written in first person, as my friend Kara Swanson has done in her amazing, Pixie sparkling Peter Pan retelling, Dust (July 2020, Enclave Escape, a division of Enclave Publishing).

Second Person

Writing in second person is often discouraged. I’m not quite sure why, other than it can feel a bit clunky on the page. My friend Angela Hunt, author of biblical historicals, says that writing in second person “is the bubble gum flavor of ice cream. It’s delicious, but a bit annoying because you have to work on holding the bubble gum in your mouth while trying to swallow the ice cream and cone” (Unmasking the Mystery of Point of View, Angela Hunt, 14).

But sometimes I think that second person (you) tends to sound narrative in tone, which can be a fun way to tell a story. So if your story feels narrative in nature and your characters aren’t good at telling their own story, you might consider writing in second person. Or if your story has an ultimately unique perspective or subject matter, then maybe telling the story in second person works. Keep in mind, second person also requires the present tense verb. Let’s read an example from a book published in 1950.

Rise Up and Walk by Turnley Walker. It’s the personal story of a man who contracted polio, a crippling flulike virus, and he chose second person voice to tell his story. I think it’s effective because it puts readers in an empathetic mood. Turnley opens the story like this,

“The regulation hospital bed is thirty-four by seventy-four inches. In the beginning that much space is allotted to each polio—the new name you get after Infantile Paralysis slugs you. That thirty-four-by-seventy-four inch area is a place that poliomyelitis allows  you, and even though you have been a much-traveled man in the outside world, you learn to live in it” (Rise Up and Walk, Turnley Walker, 7).

There are a few things I notice about this opening and the second-person viewpoint:

  • The subject matter is interesting
  • The tone is reflective and conversational
  • The tone displays empathy

Now, lest you think second person is a great idea, please think again. It’s not often used, and when it is, it can be difficult to manage because it also requires writing in present tense. Still curious? Go ahead. Give it a try. See how it works for you—and then ask a beta reader or skilled editor to ensure the story’s worthy of second person.

Third Person

Writing in third person is the most-used option for POV for several reasons. It’s easy. It’s fun. And you get to explore the world through multiple characters’ eyes. Besides, most authors write in third person.

Telling the story from the viewpoint of she or he or they or it adds life to a story because it allows readers to experience the story from a bird’s-eye view while also getting inside the head of the main character in the story at the moment.

Nan, in Elizabeth Berg’s The Pull of the Moon, sets off to adventure the world at fifty. As she gets into her car and drives across the country, she explores places, meets people, and discovers herself along the way. And I imagine the author wrote this book from Nan’s perspective, making this book an exceptional insight into the life of one character.

Writing in third person requires using the five senses and the journalist’s five W’s and H, and for the best reading experience, showing readers the world from that character’s POV. This means—what they see, hear, feel, say, think, do—whatever they experience is only told from their eyes. Only. Head hopping is not an option here. It’s more confusing for readers to experience the same scene from two characters or more. (Watch for a future blog post on that topic!)

How will your chosen POV impact your characters, the plot, your readers?

Choosing the correct POV is as important as choosing the correct plot trajectory or characters to act out the story. The correct POV is the mood of the story, the flavor you want readers to taste, the mountain you want them to view.

If you’re writing in a voice that seems “off,” try switching gears and write in another voice. There isn’t a wrong way to write a story, but there is the right viewpoint that tells the best story.

Secret Sauce to the Best Point of View

Elizabeth Berg, author of The Pull of the Moon, says, “I have wanted you to see out of my eyes so many times.”

And let that be true of your manuscript, however you choose to tell your story and whomever to use to tell your story—whether first person, second person, third person, deep point of view … or if you choose to let an animate or inanimate object tell the story, so be it.

Each writer and author benefits from exploring their characters inside and out, while asking “what if?” at every turn when crafting their novel’s plot because it’s really the secret sauce to writing a great story that captivates people, agents, editors, readers, marketers, and the person who wouldn’t necessarily pick up a book and read it.

Your Turn!

Who is your audience, and what do you hope they gain from reading your book?

Which viewpoint do you think is best to tell the story you’re writing, and why?

Drop a comment in the comments, I look forward to hearing what you have to say…

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Fiction: How to Find the Felt Need

fiction 101 finding the felt need

This is the first post in my editing series in 2020 for how to develop a great story by having all the layers in place before actually writing, or if you’ve already written your book, how to make sure all the layers are in place.

The first layer in developing a great story is finding the felt need.

We all have needs. We have a need for sleep, sustenance, and sunshine. Your readers have needs, such as reading a soul-stirring good book. Your characters have needs like how to move forward in a relationship or making it through a congested highway in time to punch the clock. And do all those needs need to match? Not really, but they should at least mesh in some way. If you don’t know why your readers are reading your book, then what’s the point? You don’t have an engaged audience, you can’t sell books, and you just aren’t going anywhere, eh? Well, I want you and your books to go somewhere! 🙂

Recently, one writer lamented that the qualities necessary for a good nonfiction book were clearly not the same as the qualities necessary for a fiction book. Readers of fiction, they said, do not specifically read to meet their “need.” Okay, so I can see what they’re saying, but I respectfully disagree.

While it’s somewhat true to that fiction readers don’t read because they have a flaming need, readers of fiction read because they enjoy a good story. And as writers who care about writing good stories, we must give readers what they’re looking for, what they’re craving. The next few paragraphs presents several ways to easily find the felt need in your fiction manuscript.

How to Find the Felt Need

  • why are you writing this particular story?
  • what do you want readers to come away with at the end of the story?
  • how do the answers to the above questions play into your characters’ lives?

Why Are You Writing this Particular Story?

If you’re writing for the sake of writing, that’s a good cause, but if you’re writing because you have an urgent message to share with the world, that’s an even better cause.

Sometimes a book explores an issue to seek to uncover the lie and expose the truth, as in To Kill A Mockingbird. Sometimes a book is meant to show the reader what is most important, such as in Where the Red Fern Grows. And sometimes a book is just fun and lighthearted, with a loose message threaded throughout, like Cranford.

What Do You Want Readers to Come Away With?

Every story has a “so what?” factor, whether it’s an essay, article, nonfiction, or fiction. Every story has a purpose, even if it’s to have a good, hearty laugh (like the ladies do in Elizabeth Gaskell’s Cranford) or to integrate the romance factor as in The Great Gatsby.

In my essay, “The Meaning of an Heirloom,” in The Horse of My Dreams (Revell 2019), I wanted readers to come away with the idea that an heirloom extends beyond the space of something tangible; an heirloom could be intangible—and have a lasting impact on the world and others.

Each author benefits from exploring this “why” question when crafting their novel because it’s really the secret sauce to writing a great story that captivates people, agents, editors, readers, marketers, and the person who wouldn’t necessarily pick up a book and read it.

A Few Examples

In The Baggage Handler by David Rawlings, the characters are on a journey of discovery about who they really are and the baggage they carry. I believe the author wanted readers to be at peace with their relationships in all kinds of spaces.

Under Moonlit Skies (Prairie Skies series) by Cynthia Roemer seeks to empower readers that self-acceptance is more powerful than romantic love.

The theme of Sarah Sundin’s Sunrise at Normandy series is about forgiveness, and each main character (The Sea Before Us [2018], The Sky Above Us [2019], and The Land Beneath Us [2020]) must forge their own forgiveness path as they interact with each other and experience different situations that speak to their own needs.

So … as you’re editing your manuscript’s “felt need” and crafting your novel and its purpose to better serve your current readers and your future readers, I hope this bit of explanation is helpful to you.

For those interested, I’ll also be giving a talk later in January 2020 about self-editing your fiction. We’ll dig into two basic elements of fiction that are key for powerful storytelling. Be the first to know details by signing up for my editing newsletter, click here!

(Psst … this isn’t just to get you to sign up for another newsletter. This is a free online conference and I’ll have a few practical gifts for you too! Details forthcoming…) Love to join? Click here!

Questions? Comments? I’d love to engage in the conversation with you! Drop your question or comment in the chat below, and I’ll look forward to responding!

Your Turn!

What is your character’s felt need? What is your story’s “why”?

What do you want your readers to come away with by the end of reading your book?

(Please, no retelling what the book is *about.)

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Contests 101: 5 Editor Takeaways

Contests bring out the best in all of us—the entrants, the judges, the agents. 

Contests-101-five-editor-takeaways-tisha-martin-author-editor

I’ve been on the receiving and giving side of both ends of the manuscript contest spectrum.

This blog posts focuses on the editor’s response to contest critiques.

As an editor with experience in evaluating and editing manuscripts (250 since 2017), I understand what it takes to catch an editor’s eye. I value the awesome responsibility required to evaluate and comment on a writer’s beloved work. And I respect what’s needed for each manuscript that comes across the work desk. It’s exhilarating. Truly.

Five Facts about Evaluating Contest Manuscripts

  1. Evaluating is hard.
  2. Evaluating is vulnerable.
  3. Evaluating is empowering.
  4. Evaluating is responsive.
  5. Evaluating is unpredictable.

I’d like to think that these are five of many possible facts about evaluating contest manuscripts.

Five facts from an editor’s perspective in evaluating manuscripts

  • Hard, because we know the author has poured blood, sweat, and tears into their manuscript, and it’s as much a part of them as their massive library collection.
  • Vulnerable, because we’re judging blind, not knowing who wrote what we’re reading. Yet we want to offer kind and helpful comments for each entry.
  • Empowering, because to think that we get to empower and validate a writer we don’t know is just the best thing there could ever be. That’s just pure bliss right there, and tastes richer than any mint dark chocolate bar in the whole wide world.
  • Responsive, because hitting that Submit button after judging an entry because we hope we have judged to the best of our ability and respected the author’s voice, their story, and the message while providing active feedback tailored for each manuscript.
  • Unpredictable, because once we hit that Submit button, there is no turning back. No guarantee that the writer will agree with us as we prayed our way through each story for wisdom in assessing and for words of encouragement in offering helpful feedback so that the story can be improved and scale up the ladder toward publication success.

What ebb-and-flow levels of curiosity and responsibility, huh?

In truth, most editors are happy to review manuscripts, to offer advice, to empower authors because if it weren’t for authors, we’d be out of a job. Publishers would not survive. Bookstores would not add to their shelves. And readers would have no books to enjoy.

Contests 101: Five Editor Takeaways

  1. Evaluating is easy.
  2. Evaluating is protection.
  3. Evaluating is discouraging.
  4. Evaluating is empowering.
  5. Evaluating is predictable.

I know, I know. Oxymoron, but we’re doing a switch on the “fear” words from the five facts about evaluating contest manuscripts.

  • Easy. While we realize that we take great care in providing useful, helpful, and honest feedback to each writer’s entry, we know that being as clear as we can about how the writer can implement our comments will be easy for them.
  • Protection. Most contests have high guidelines for their judges (or they should!). We know that a contest that has solid expectations for each entry is gold because we do indeed value each submitted manuscript and want to critique it to the absolute best of our industry knowledge. This creates a sense of protection for the entrants because the judge knows what they’re looking for and will have your story’s best interest at heart.
  • Discouraging. We sometimes do have to provide the author with a low score because perhaps the story is not where it needs to be . . . yet. And that yet is so empowering!
  • Empowering. And sometimes we give a great score because the writer did well in their story presentation.
  • Predictable. In all, we know that if the writer has done their homework, studied the craft, enlisted beta readers or a professional editor in the editing and proofreading stage, and knows that a contest does not define them or their writing, then we are confident that our comments on the writer’s manuscript will be received in a manner of gratefulness and encouragement.

And, who knows? You might even place in the contest, like one of my author-clients did!

Above all, each judge should view your manuscript through the eyes of grace. If they don’t, then please by all means, you’re free to chuck their advice. Grace given is a valuable and precious gift.

So, my writer-friend, don’t bemoan when submitting to contests. Exercise due diligence. Find out what your manuscript needs *before you submit. Most often, this includes reaching out to a trusted and experienced editor who knows what they’re looking for and who can give you the best overall critique advice for your story—in hopes of getting great feedback on that story submission.

If you’re worried about the cost, it’s usually not much. The cost of a critique is basically the same cost as a cup of coffee—-in general terms of experience. Both prices and experiences are just right.

So . . . are YOU submitting this season? Le me know in the comments!

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Five Things I Learned After Writing My First Chapter

typists

With my cursor at the beginning of Chapter 1 of my WWII historical fiction novel, I hit Ctrl+Enter and sighed.

Beginning a book all over again isn’t pleasant sometimes.

I loved this chapter. I mean, really liked it, even though I knew all along something wasn’t quite right about it.

For several months when I first started writing all those years ago, I struggled to figure out why chapter 1 didn’t work as the beginning for my novel.

And now, I needed to start over and create a new Chapter 1.

A few contests, a writing conference or ten, a plethora of writing craft books, and two agents later, my intuition had solidified into a clear direction of where this novel needed to go. The feedback was abundantly helpful, and most of the readers enjoyed the few chapters I had submitted.

But the first chapter lacked … heart. The first chapter was missing the GMC (goal, motivation, conflict).

My chapter lacked a clear, immediate action.

Who are these people and why do you want me to care for them?? 

I can honestly say I’ve always been a writer who struggled to write beginnings. I’m sure I’m not the only one, and there are writers who dislike middles and endings too.

Here are a few things I learned about my now-improved chapter (the Chapter 1 that everyone liked but couldn’t connect with):

  1. Always introduce your characters early enough in the first page that gives the reader reason to continue to the second page and the third page and eventually the last page in as few sittings as possible. Maybe your character is afraid to drive over a bridge or wants to capture a rattlesnake. You want that first page to pop! off the page.
  2. Give your characters interesting, lively dialogue . You want to make your readers laugh and relate to the story, even if in a small way.
  3. Engage your readers. Don’t make them ask the kind of questions that drive them to set your story down and go do something that they had been putting off (like washing laundry or bathing the dog).
  4. Don’t overwrite. Less is always more.
    (This was hard for me at first because I like to describe things. But too much actually hurts your writing and may frustrate your readers. Readers want a quick read they can still enjoy.)
  5. Choose your words well. Your words can endear your readers, or cause them to run. Mark Twain said it best. It’s the difference between lightening and the lightning bug.

Taking an honest look at my first chapter, and based on my family’s and friends’ and judges’/agents’ comments, I’m glad I’m starting over. Last week, I spent four days pounding out a new Chapter 1 — a rough draft right now, but hopefully in the near future it will be a well-rounded opening chapter!

Now, excuse me while I read over this post and check to see that I’ve engaged you, helped you relate to it, caused you to want to read it, and that I’ve used my words well.

Oh, if you want to learn more about engaging your readers with that first chapter, I’ll be speaking about The Felt Need and How to Work with an Editor at two different writer’s events in Summer 2023. Check my socials for details!

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Contests 101: 5 Author Takeaways

contests-101-five-author-takeaways-tisha-martin-author-editor

Contests bring out the best and the worst in all of us—the entrants, the judges, the agents or editors. 

As a published author and professional editor, I’ve been on the receiving and giving side of both ends of the contest spectrum. And though I often didn’t like the judges’ score, I did appreciate their gracious feedback and insightful questions.

Their feedback and score did not define me or my writing skills.

I’m still alive and well to tell about it. Like now.

This blog focuses on the author’s response to contest judges’ feedback. (Next month, I will share the judges’ side.)

As a writer with about twenty years behind me (well, twenty exploratory, learning, and professional years combined, but still counts!), and having submitted to college contests three years in a row with nothing but disappointment (and I was a writing major), and having submitted to professional contests three years in a row with nothing but confusion and tears to show for (didn’t my writing degree prove anything??), I’ll share my personal journey with you.

Five Facts about Submitting to Contests

  1. Submitting is hard.
  2. Submitting is vulnerable.
  3. Submitting is empowering.
  4. Submitting is scary.
  5. Submitting is unpredictable.

I’d like to think that these are five of many possible facts about submitting to contests.

  • Hard, because we will never know if our manuscript has been edited enough. What if we missed that comma that we didn’t know we missed? What if our dialogue doesn’t sing? What if . . .? What if someone is just a better writer than me? Oop, let’s just close the computer right now and hang it up forever.
  • Vulnerable, because someone we don’t know is going to read our precious words. Oh my gosh, that’s just too much for me. What if this judge absolutely hates my story because their uncle chased them with a scary clown mask. giving them lifetime nightmares too? Oh dear. That’ll disqualify me for sure!
  • Empowering, because to think that someone we don’t know is going to possibly, hopefully validate us is just the best thing there could ever be. That’s just pure bliss right there, and tastes richer than any mint dark chocolate bar in the whole wide world.
  • Scary, because hitting that Submit button just might seal our fate to never ever send out our work again, so we might as well just keep sipping coffee and eating dark chocolate and loving, appreciating our words, as if no one else will ever like them but us.
  • Unpredictable, because once we hit that Submit button, there is no turning back. No guarantee that a judge will agree with us. No promise that a judge will believe in us or our story.

What ebb-and-flow levels of fear we’ve created, huh?

True. If you are not inclined to submit because of these fears (yes, let’s say what they are), then you won’t follow through. If that sounds harsh, please understand that I have been in that spot before.

I didn’t follow through because I sincerely thought my manuscript idea and story was not good enough. No one would like it. The judges would give my manuscript a total score 40 and tell me I needed to enhance my characterization, my theme, my dialogue. Blah. Why enter if I was going to get that kind of rejection? Not worth it!

Ohhh, but what I didn’t realize was that submitting to contests *was worth it! Don’t believe me? That’s okay. You’re not inclined to; but if you’ll stick with me to the end, I’ll share five things authors can takeaway from submitting to contests . . .

Contests 101: Five Author Takeaways

  1. Submitting is easy.
  2. Submitting is protection.
  3. Submitting is discouraging.
  4. Submitting is empowering.
  5. Submitting is predictable.

I know, I know. Oxymoron, but we’re doing a switch on the “fear” words from the five facts about submitting to contests.

  • Easy. This might sound confusing or intriguing. When we dash the fear that submitting is hard, submitting then becomes easy. Not necessarily easy in the act of hitting that Submit button, but easy in knowing that whatever happens, it’s easy to let go and trust God and the powers that be.
  • Protection. Mmm, yes. Protection. Most contests have strong guidelines for their judges (or they should! If you’re unsure, then take the power plunge and query them for judges’ guidelines or qualifications). This creates a sense of protection for the entrants because the judge knows what they’re looking for and will have your story’s best interest at heart.
  • Discouraging. This is a heavy word, but it’s truth here. You may not get a good score when the results come in. That’s life. That’s reality. That’s discouraging. However, if the judge behaved objectively (as they should), then their comments will be comforting, encouraging, and empowering. You’ll know what to do next time! Isn’t that encouraging?
  • Empowering. And sometimes you’ll get a great score on one score sheet. Yay! Go you! Or maybe you’ll receive a personalize comment from a judge who discloses their name and email address, specifically telling you to contact them when you’ve made changes. Ooo! (Now, they’re generally not supposed to, but in the faith-based market, judges are also sometimes editors, so they know a good story when they see one; and often reach out to help authors who show promise—in the hopes that the author will one day impress and agent or publishing board.) How cool is that?
  • Predictable. Hmm, this one is interesting, because it’s kinda like gambling, isn’t it? I say submitting is predictable because if you have done your due diligence and gotten good solid feedback on your manuscript before submitting . . . meaning, you have had encouragement from a trusted source (published author, skilled editor), then chances are, you’ll have great results after hitting that Submit button.

And, who knows? You might even place in the contest, like one of my author-clients did!

Above all, each judge should view your manuscript through the eyes of grace. If they don’t, then please by all means, you’re free to chuck their advice. Grace given is a valuable and precious gift.

So, my writer-friend, don’t bemoan when submitting to contests. Exercise due diligence. Find out what your manuscript needs *before you submit. Most often, this includes reaching out to a trusted and experienced editor who knows what they’re looking for and who can give you the best overall critique advice for your story—in hopes of getting great feedback on that story submission.

If you’re worried about the cost, it’s usually not much. The cost of a critique is basically the same cost as a cup of coffee—-in general terms of experience. Both prices and experiences are just right.

So . . . are YOU submitting this season? Let me know in the comments!

We’re into the submission season. There are still open contests out there!

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Novel Research: Town History

It’s always fun to dig into the history of the town you’re writing about.

Many famous people grew up in small towns, which is really surprising. Ronald Reagan grew up in Dixon, Illinois, and Abraham Lincoln in New Salem, Illinois (and Kentucky). When I began researching the town I’m writing about, I learned a lot about the town’s native authors. Several authors who wrote famously about this small, Midwestern town grew up in the town and moved away after graduation, only to write about their towns later in life.

Reinhold Niebuhr

Renowned theologian and author Dr. Reinhold Niebuhr grew up in Lincoln, Illinois. Reinhold Niebuhr

Doing research behind the author of the famous poem, “The Serenity Prayer,” I discovered that Dr. Reinhold Niebuhr grew up in Lincoln, Illinois. His father was the administrator of the state-of-the-art Deaconess Hospital in Lincoln. One of his brothers, Walter, was managing editor of the Lincoln Daily News–Herald newspaper, until he passed away in 1946.

Niebuhr children
Siblings, Left to Right: H. Richard, Reinhold, Hulda, and Walter Niebuhr

A theologian, Reinhold was Dean and Professor of Applied Christianity at the Union Theological Seminary in New York City. His photo was featured on the cover of Time magazine in 1948. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1964, and was in the top 100 most influential people in the twentieth century (Life magazine, 1990).
While he did not write much about his hometown as did other authors who grew up there, Niebuhr wrote about thought-provoking and often controversial subjects. He wrote about the spirituality of man and direction of its society shortly after WWII. Several of his titles are Moral Man and Immoral Society, The Nature and Destiny of Man, The Irony of American History, Leaves from the Notebook of a Tamed Cynic, among other titles that explored society, the human soul, and politics.
Incidentally, in my first (unpublished) manuscript set during WWII, my main character mentions “The Serenity Prayer,” which was published in the early 1940s.
William Maxwell
William-Keepers-Maxwell-Jr-local-author-tisha-martin-historical-fictionWilliam Maxwell was one of two locals who wrote extensively about their hometown. His stories and novels are often deep, exploring the social and psychological aspects of people living in a small town. According to online research, Maxwell was born in Lincoln, Illinois on August 16, 1908. His parents were William Keepers Maxwell and Eva Blossom (née Blinn) Maxwell. He attended Senn High School. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois in 1930 where he was class salutatorian, poetry editor of The Daily Illini, and a member of Sigma Pi fraternity. Maxwell earned a master’s degree at Harvard University. Maxwell taught English briefly at the University of Illinois before moving to New York. (Wikipedia.)
Maxwell wrote of tough but necessary topics, such as social and psychological strains of the small town and how various events affected him. Only three of his short stories held happier moments and included people from his childhood. For example Miss Vera Brown  was a popular fifth-grade teacher, whose death devastates her male students (“Love” in All the Days and Nights 245-248). Another example is Mr. Danforth, the venerable horse veterinarian whose advice is quietly sought by many townspeople (Time Will Darken It). A third example is Lincoln College biology Professor Chris Oglevee, who ably mentors the Cub Scout troop of the First Presbyterian Church (“With Reference to an Incident at a Bridge” [For Eudora Welty] in All the Days and Nights 265-269). (D. L. Henson, Finding Lincoln Illinois.)
But one incident happened in his life that he wrote searchingly but fondly of. During the Spanish Flu of 1918, young Maxwell and his mother became ill. Maxwell recovered but his mother did not. Her death devastated the family, and his father sent the boy to live with relatives in Bloomington, a town nearly an hour away, which would have been quite a trip in 1918. He later rejoined his father in Chicago. Maxwell’s story They Came Like Swallows depicts this event so vividly and shows how such a wide-spread epidemic (that spread all the way to Philadelphia) affected an eight-year-old boy from a small Midwestern town.
In my current WIP, I dive a bit into the social history of the townspeople that my journalist is writing about. The more she uncovers about one of the oldest buildings in town, the more prominent folks will stop at nothing to silence her.
So, the next time you’re writing historical fiction or reading historical fiction, appreciate the amount of research the author took to create even a small scene to “get the facts just right.” It really adds meaning to the depth of the novel.
What interesting towns have you read about?
Photos: Courtesy of D. L. Henson and Wikipedia